Fairytale Destinations - Coober Pedy, Australia

When you think of Fairytales that live underground you might conjure up Dwarves, Trolls, and Goblins. Australians don't usually spring to mind when you imagine people living underground. Well, Coober Pedy is quite famous for its underground residences called "dugouts", which are built in this fashion due to the scorching daytime heat. The town is located 525 miles north of Adelaide on the Stuart Highway and sometimes referred to as the "opal capital of the world" because of the quantity of precious opals that are mined there.

Opal was found in Coober Pedy on 1 February 1915; since then the town has been supplying most of the world's gem-quality opal. Coober Pedy today relies as much on tourism as the opal mining industry to provide the community with employment and sustainability. Coober Pedy has over seventy opal fields and is the largest opal mining area in the world.

Visitors Attractions in Coober Pedy include the mines, the graveyard and the underground churches (the Serbian Orthodox Church and the Catholic Church).

Coober Pedy Underground Homes

If you Think the residents of Coober Pedy suffer living in these Dugouts, think again. Coober Pedy underground homes are not what you expect. The idea of living underground usually triggers thoughts of dark, damp and cramped spaces. Also, the homes aren't the deep caves that people imagine. They are actually dug into the hillsides.

You really have to go and have a look at these homes yourself, or stay in underground accommodation in Coober Pedy before you can truly understand. You'll probably end up dreaming of an underground home yourself. The early Coober Pedy dugouts were indeed the holes that had been dug in search for opal.Back then opal mining was back breaking manual labor, so the earliest Coober Pedy homes were no bigger than they absolutely needed to be. But people kept digging, they were in the mining business after all, and the homes were constantly expanded.

A wonderful example of an early dugout that has been expanded into an impressive living space is Faye's Underground Home. It started out as a one room dugout, used by the mail truck driver. Faye Nayler bought it and that original room is now the kitchen. The home you see today was built over ten years, using only picks and shovels. Three bedrooms with walk in closets, living room, bar, wine cellar... What else could you want? Faye's is the only Coober Pedy underground home open to visitors that is actually lived in. However, there are other, museum style display homes. 

Accommodations

Want to experience the feeling of underground living in Coober Pedy? Not a problem.It's an amazing experience to sleep in an underground room. No noise penetrates, the stillness is absolute. You may find it is the best night's sleep you'll ever have.

The climate underground is also fantastic. Whether it's below zero or above 122°F outside, the temperature in an underground home is always perfect. And so is the humidity, which is really pleasant compared to the bone dry air in the desert outside. There is a range of options for underground accommodation in Coober Pedy, hotels, bed & breakfasts, and even an underground campground.

Enjoy A Game Of Golf
The local golf course – mostly played at night with glowing balls, to avoid daytime temperatures – is completely free of grass, and golfers take a small piece of "turf" around to use for teeing off. The town is served by daily coach services from Adelaide. 

Call Rawhide Travel and Tours at (602) 843-5100. Check out our website: rawhidetravel.com or email us at flythis@rawhidetravel.com.

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